How long did it take General In Chief George B McClellan to prepare his army for battle?

Answer 1

US President Lincoln had been badly disappointed by the Union army's performance and defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run. He was not alone. Newspapers and the general public of the Union were equally disappointed. One cause for the defeat was that the Union army took the field as an untrained army. It's commanders did the best they could with their new recruits. Aiding the Union defeat was poor strategy and poor tactics. They failed to recognize the superiority of the Confederacy's interior lines and the importance of using railroads as a means to position troops when and where they were needed.Lincoln, quite correctly, gave the job of retraining the Army of the Potomac to General George B. McClellan. His brilliance and youth became well known, so much so that Lincoln appointed him to the position of General In Chief of the US Army. His direct command was over the Army of the Potomac. This was the primary military force that protected Washington DC. Lincoln was impressed with McClellan and gave him the time required to become a trained and successful fighting force. This took approximately eight months. Drilling, marching, and tactics were part of the training. McClellan's methods were excellent, and he was by all accounts an organizer and planner ranking above all the top men the US had from West Point.

Answer 2

General George B. McClellan landed on the Virginia peninsula in the first week of April 1862. Due to a number of delays, his army did not engage the main Confederate forces until May 31, 1862. This delay gave the Confederates time to position their troops and improve the fortifications around Richmond.

Answer 3

General George B. McClellan was promoted to the rank of general in chief in November of 1861 to early March of 1862. As general in chief he was responsible for the entire military efforts for the US and was also the commander of the Army of the Potomac. President Lincoln believed that McClellan needed to focus on the capture of Richmond, and removed him from the most senior general in the Union position. McClellan then served as a major general after the Battle of Antietam in September of 1862. After the Fall of 1862 elections Lincoln removed McClellan from active duty and his friend, Ambrose Burnside replaced him as the commander of the Army of the :Potomac.